Injection meat-curing machine



L. J. KENYON INJECTION MEAT-CURING MACHINE April 12, 1949,;1

3 Sheets-'Sheet 1 Filed June 1s, 1947 NQ INVENTOR Lee J. Kenyon ATTO R N EY l.. J. KENYQN 2,466,772

INJECTION MEAT-CURING MACHINE -Sheets-Sheet 2 April 12, 1949.

Filed Jung 13, 1947 HHH.

NIMH- lNvx-:NTORv Lee J. Kenyon ATTORNEY April l2, 1949. L. J. KENYoN INJECTION MEAT-CURING MACHIME 5 shets-shet 3 Filed June 13, 1947 annoU Y om, E Te N mK DO WJ. n Y. B

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m mw uw Q`N QmK Patented pr. 12j, 194? UNITED STATES 'TENT" OFFICE NJ ECTION MEAT-CURING MACHINE Lee J. Kenyon, Lawrence, NrY:

Application June 13, 194%SerialNo.754;349

(CII BSL-257) 6 Claims. l'

This invention relates to the curing ofmeat by means of a curing fluid or brinefinjected into `the meat. More .speoiiicallythis relates to apparatus forthus curing the meat, in which the meat is positioned asupon a supporting member or platform, and a reciprocable fluid-injecting piercing member is movable transversely of and relative to .the platform so that it can advance into and retract from the meat.

It is among the objects to provide apparatus of this kind which is easy to manipulate and capable of being operated atan ellcient speed; which is highly positive in vits action, as well as efcient as .to injection and uniform distribution of the fluid or brine into the meat; which is compact; which is easy to maintain clean; which is simple of construction, yet rugged, and comprises a minimum of movable parts; which `has a minimum of movable parts exposed to the brine; in which the injection of the curing fluid is timed as a function of the positioning of the piercing member relative to the meat,.and in the operation of which a minimum of curing .iiuid escapes prematurely from the -piercing member.

I attain these objects by providing upon a base a resiliently depressible platform to receive the meat, and a plurality of .upwardly directed uidinjecting piercing members which penetrate into the meat when the platform .is depressed bya movable top conning member bearing down upon the meat.

Accordingto one feature the depressible platform has at its underside Vertical guide means upon the base whereby its upward motion is limited, and displaceable to render the platform readily ,releasable and detachable from the guide means.

According to another feature the platform is yieldably supported by leaf springs.

According to another feature the injection of the curing fluid is controlled and 'timed by lost motion actuating means through which the movement of the platform actuates a fluid supply valve.

According to another feature the top confining member is swingably mounted in a frame surrounding it, which frame in turn is swingably mounted upon the base.

According to still another feature the base provides a tray under ,and around the depressible meat-receiving platform.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which with the foregoing Will be set forthv in the following description.. In the. following. description and in vthe 2 claims,` parts -will beidentied by specilc names for. convenience, butthey are `intended to be -as genericvin their 4application to similar partsrasthe art .will permit. In the accompanying drawings therehas. been illustratedthe best embodiment of the invention known vto me, but such embodimentisto .be regarded as typical .only of many possible embodiments, and the invention is not to belii'nited thereto.

The novel features considered characteristicfof myinvention yare'set forth `with. particularity, in the appended claims, The .invention itself, how'- erer, both .as to its :organization and its method ofoperation, togetherwith additional objects and advantages thereof, will best be understood from the followingzdescription .of a specific embodiment Whenread in connection with the accom,- panying drawings in which Fig. 1 is ai-plan view of the apparatus with parts broken away toshow the .releasable guide means.

Fig. .2 is a longitudinal. vertical sectional view taken ,on the line 2--2 .in Fig. 1 showing the ini.- tial operating position of the meat-receiving platform.;

Fig. 3isfa sectionalviewsimilar to-Fig. 2'.al. though showingg the .meat f receivingplatform. -in depressed position..-

The :apparatus comprisessa .stationaryyportion or Abase I 0, a -depressible meat receivingplatform I I, and a movable topconning member orplate I2. Apiece of meat ,I3 to be'cured can befplaced between the'platform II and the confining/mem-y berfIE, and the-member I2 .forced down upon the meat suciently to `depress, the.-v platform Il against the pressure of leaf spring units I4 and allowvv a l.set of upwardly; pointed tfluid-injecting stationary .piercingfmembers -I5 to penetrate Vin-to themeat 4through openings rI6 in the platform, l I.

The stationary portionv .or base. I0 comprises-a base plate Il supported by posts Tor/legs I8.: Pe ripherallyfrom. the `base .plate yI'I rises-:a wall-I9 having end portions I Ela and i912, and side portions I9c` andv I9d, androunded .corner portion. |98-, thus forming atrayiitted. or set into a; steel frame 20 mounted or fastened upon thezpOSts-IS.

The `platform .I I :is urged .upwardly .byfa set vof six leaf spring .units AI 4 .each of lwhich,unitscomprises a downwardly; curved yhalf I@ andanvupr wardly curved. half f Mb, thel corresponding ends of 'the halvestjoining-,ona another tangentially and beingfastened together as `Aby rivets ,140. and |401 respectively.. The lower half ofeach spring unit is-suitablyfastened at .itslowest. point-to the` base plate Il, while the upper half'atits highest, pointlhas a: holel2l inwhich..lodgessa projection 22 provided at the underside of the platform II, so that the platform can be removed while the spring units I4 remain in place.

The platform II is depressibly mounted upon the base plate I'I in a telescopic manner which provides downwardly extending telescopic guide elements or portions 23 fastened to the underside of the platform Il, having sliding relationship with upwardly extending complementary guide elements or anchoring elements 24. That is to say, each element 23 consists of a horizontal upper end portion 23a whereby it is fastened to the underside of the platform I I as -by a screw, a vertical downwardly extending body portion 23b and a lower short outwardly extending end portion 23". Each complementary element 24 comprises a horizontally extending foot portion 242, a vertically rising body portion 24D, and an inwardly extending short upper end or top portion 24 engaging over the lower end portion 23c (see Fig. 2) of the associated member 23. The foot portion 24a is mounted to be swingable horizontally, that is about a vertical axis, as by means of a bolt or screw 26 screwed into a foot member 2 which in turn is fastened to the base plate II as :by bolts 28 and 29. The element 24 is swingable by means of a finger tab 3) in the manner indicated in Fig. l by the dot-and-dash line position. The full-line position of the element 24 in Fig. 1 corresponds to the operative position of that element in Fig. 2, while the dot-and-dash line position is that in which the member is inoperative and releases the associated member 23. An element 23 cooperatively associated with an element 24 may herein be called a guide unit G. Several such guide units may be provided suitably spaced from one another along each side of the platform II so that there might be eight such guide units in all, although ten such units are shown, that is two at each short side and three at each long side. All elements 24 may be swung to the dotand-dash line position in order to release and remove the platform I I.

The piercing members I having brine emitting orifices I5b are connected to a distributing pipe system H disposed underneath the base plate I1. Each piercing member I5 has an internally threaded foot portion I5a by means of which it is screwed over a corresponding externally threaded vertical pipe portion 32, such vertical pipe portions 32 being provided at their lower ends with a nipple 33, 34 or 35 respectively for horizontal pipe connections. The vertical pipe portions 32 extend through the base plate I'I by way of holes suitably sealed against fluid leakage and are rigidly held as by nuts 32a engaging suitable threading upon the tube portions 32 and tightened against the top face of the base plate II. In Fig. l are shown three longitudinal rows of piercing members I5, the central row comprising ve, the two outer rows each comprising four such piercing members. All except the members I5 at each end and that in the middle of the central row have vertical pipe portions which have nipples 33 for horizontally throughgoing pipe connection, the two end nipples 34 being for a similar horizontal throughgoing connection as well as for an additional lateral horizontal branch, while the central nipple 35 is for horizontally throughgoing connection as well as for a branch connection at the bottom.

The nipples 33, 34 and 35 are connected with straight pipe sections 36 of which there are ten, and curved or corner pipe sections 3'I of which there are four, the nipples 33, 31S and 35 and the pipe sections 36 and 31 thus constituting a header H supplied with curing liquid or brine by a vertical supply pipe 38 connected with nipple at its upper end and with T-connection 39 at its lower end. The lower end of the T-connection has a drain cock 40, while the lateral branch is connected with a horizontal pipe 4| leading from a control valve unit indicated at 42 and supplied with brine as by a pipe 43, the brine being supplied to the unit l2 under pressure as from a pump (not shown). The valve unit l2 is fastened to the underside of the base plate I'I as by a bracket 42a.

The control valve unit 42 has in it a vertical actuating plunger-like member 44 the up-anddown movement of which controls the admission of brine to the pipe header H and the fluidinjecting piercing members l5. That is to say, the member 44 is normally spring urged upwardly into valve-closing position. The member ill has a nat head portion 45 upon which engages a vertical tappet or rod 46 guided in a bushing 1lll fixed in the base plate l1 and having sealing relationship therewith due to a shoulder portion :i8 of the bushing being tightened against the top face of the base plate I1 by means of a tightening nut i9 engaging upon the lower end of the bushing underneath the base plate I'I. A small wearing surface is provided at the underside of the platform Ii directly above the tappet 46 in the form of a fiat head screw member 50 screwed into the platform Il from the underside. A bell crank lever 5l is provided upon the bracket l2a and has a free horizontal arm 52 engaging upon and having camming contact with the top face of the plunger-like member 44, and a vertical arm 53 loosely connected with a horizontal actuating rod 54 having at its free end a hand-piece 55, the rod being slidably supported in a bracket 55 fastened to the frame 20. A drainage pipe 51 extends downwardly from the base plate II allowing brine that might leak froin the piercing members I5 to be passed away by opening a drain cock 53 at the lower end of pipe 5l.

The confining member or plate I2 has fastened to its topside a number of brackets 58 and 59 at one end, brackets 60 and 6I at the other end, and a bracket 62 in the middle, the brackets being fastened as by screws 62a countersunk at the underside of the plate. Rotatable in the brackets is a tubular member or rod 63 extending substantially from end to end of the plate I2 and constituting a transverse portion of a frame or bail F swingably mounted as at 64 and 65 upon a bracket construction 66 (see Fig. 2) fastened to the underside of the frame 20. Each of the swingable mountings 64 and 65 of the frame comprises a torsion spring 61 counterbalancing. the weight of the frame and tending to hold the same in a raised or upwardly swung position.

The bail F is (see Fig. l) composed of a front or handle portion 6I, diagonal front corner portions 68 and 69, side portions I0 and 1I, and rear end portions 'I2 and 13.

The top face of the platform II when in its upper limit position (see Fig. 2) is flush with the top edge face of the surrounding wall I9 of the tray structure of which wall I9 constitutes a part. Also in this upper limit position the piercing members I5 terminate just sufficiently below the top face of the platform to insure their noninterference with the piece I 3 when it is slid onto the platform II for curing.

In addition to the leaf spring units I4 there are provided similar platform supporting spring `units'. Maand .15 (seeFig. Y1.) extendingatright anglesito'the units I4, that is'rone unit :extending alongzeachl long side oftheplatform II. This combination vof-'itransversely and longitudinally extending spring units, herein also simply termed the transverse and the longitudinal spring units or the transverse and the longitudinal groups of spring units, provides for substantially evenly distributed spring support for the platform II, which uniform distribution facilitates the straight line depression or Vertical guidance of the platform II.

The .spring units 'I4 and 15 consist of halves or.f component leafsprings 14a and 14h, and 15a and 15b respectively and they are mounted in the same fashion as the spring units I4 in that they have their lower halves or lower leaf springs fastened to the tray bottom or plate I'I as by bolts 29, while the upper halves or leaf springs through holes provided in the topmost portion thereof engage over respective projections 229v and 22b which projections extend downwardly from the under side of the platform Il. The projections 22@L and 22h constitute the inverted head portion of screw bolts 25 screwed into sockets 25a which sockets in turn are anchored in the platform Il.

Operation Prior to the actual curing operation the fluid or brine supply and distributing pipes may be cleared of entrapped air by pulling on the handpiece 55 and thus on the actuating rod 54 to open the passage through the valve unit 42 to admit fluid supplied under pressure. The passage through the valve unit opens as the pull on the rod 54 forces the arm `52 of bell crank 5I down upon head 45 of the valve member 44. Consequently, the releasing of the hand-piece 55 will permit the valve member 44 to return to valveclosing position. Air and initial iiuid may then be allowed to escape by opening the drain cook 40. Air may thus also be displaced from the piercing members I5 after lcock 4e has been closed. After the conduits or pipes have thus been cleared of air, hand-piece 55 is released shutting the valve unit and thereby shutting off the brine. Any brine which may have leaked from the piercing members I5 may be drained from the tray portion of the base I through the drain cock 58.

In the curing operation proper a suitable piece of meat I3 is placed upon the platform ll while the swin-gable frame F is in a raised or backwardly swung position as is frractionally indicated by the dot-and-dash line position thereof in Fig. 2. The operator then swings the frame F downwardly by grasping the front or handle portion 61 thereof until the top-confining member or plate I2 engages upon the top of the meat. Further downward pressure by the operator upon the handle portion 61 of the frame will depress the platform II as the meat is being compressed thereon between the members II and I2, thereby causing the piercing members I to penetrate into the meat while the brine supply is still shut-off. Thus the platform Il may be depressed a distance d, that is until the piercing members have penetrated into the meat a distance equivalent to the distance d. Only then will the platform through its wearing member or surface 5U engage the tappet 45 which in turn will depress the valve plunger 44 to open the brine supply coincident with` a corresponding continued depression of the platform by the operators hand still pressing upon the handle portion 61. That is to say due -tothis lost motion relationship-.between the fplatthe beginning of the return movement ofzthe` platform `I I :so1thatduring ithe larger portion .of the withdrawal of the piercing members I5 no brine will flow from them.

I claim:

l. Injection meat-curing apparatus comprising a base, a meat-receiving platform having openings therein and upwardly spaced from the base at an upper limit position and depressible to a lower limit position, guide means for the up-anddown movement of the platform comprising limit means for determining said upper limit position, compression spring means effective between said base and said platform urging the platform to its upper limit position, a set of upwardly pointed fixed piercing injection members mounted on said base and adapted to penetrate through said openings into a piece of meat placed upon said platform when pressure is exerted upon said meat sufficient to depress said platform against said spring pressure, conduit means for supplying curing fluid to said piercing members, a control valve unit for said conduit means supplied with curing fiuid under pressure, lost motion actuating means effective between said platform and said valve unit whereby said platform is effective during the latter part of its depression to open fluid passage through said valve unit and to close said passage during the initial part of its return movement, said guide means comprising a plurality of guide units spaced from one another and disposed along the peripheral portion of the platform, a respective guide unit compri-sing a guide portion extending vertically downwardly .from the underside of said .platform and another guide porti-on extending vertically upwardly from said base and having vertical guiding relationship with the first-mentioned guide portion, each guide portion having at its free end a terminal portion, which terminal portions inter-engage in determining said upper limit position of the platform, mounting meansfor one of said guide portions whereby that guide portion is displaceable from its normal guiding position with respect to the other guide portion in order to release one guide portion from the other .past and :beyond said upper limit position.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, in -which said spring means comprise two groups of leaf spring units having a downwardly curved and an upwardly curved half portion, the respective ends of the half portions being tangentially joined to one another, one group of said spring units extending transversely of the platform and the other group of spring units extending substantially at right angles to the spring units of the first-mentioned group and longitudinally of the platform whereby a longitudinally extending spring unit is disposed and extends along each longitudinal edge portion of the platform.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which said spring means comprise leaf spring units having a downwardly curved and an upwardly curved half '7 portion, the respective ends of the half portions being tangentially joined to one another.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which the ybase com-prises a tray substantially surrounding said platform.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1, with the addition of a top-confining member movably mounted upon said base and operable to exert downward pressure upon the meat.

6. Apparatus according to claim l, vwith the addition of top-conning means movably mounted upon said base and `operable to exert pressure upon I'said meat, said confining means comprising a plate, a frame substantially surrounding said plate and swingably mounted upon said base, said REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,271,490 Servatius July 2, 1918 1,988,087 Peron Jan. 15, 1935 1,989,287 Parr Jan. 29, 1935 

